Shoe tree



Dec. 14, 1943. p, BAXENDALE 2,336,460

SHOE TREE Filed May 26, 1942' Patented Dec. 14, 1943 SHOE TREE Albert P.Baxendale, Brockton, Mass, assignor to United Shoe MachineryCorporation, Flemington, N. J a corporation of New Jersey ApplicationMay 26, 1942, Serial No. 444,559

4 Claims. CCI. 12128.6)

This invention relates to shoe trees, and is herein illustrated asembodied in a two-part tree from which all metal parts have beeneliminated, it being an improvement upon the construction shown inLetters Patent of the United States No. 970,165, granted September 13,1910, upon the application of Charles A. Batchelder.

Two-part shoe trees, such as that described in the Batchelder patent,comprise a forepart and a heel part which are hinged together, by meansof a metal pin, to facilitate the insertion of the tree in a shoe. Inorder that such trees may not only fit the shoes in which they are usedmore perfectly but may be adapted for different sizes of shoes, thehinge member is commonly provided with a plurality of transverseapertures any one of which is adapted to receive a transverse pinextending through the sides of a bifurcated portion at the rear end ofthe forepart to vary the size of the shoe tree. Such metal pins,however, are capable of rusting and may therefore stain the shoes.Moreover, when they have rusted, it is difiicult to remove the pin andreplace it as desired. Accordingly, an object of the invention is toprovide an improved shoe tree having a hinge pin of non-metallicconstruction especially designed to be retained frictionally in thetree.

Inasmuch as a wooden pin must necessarily be cut substantiallylongitudinally of the grain of the wood, there is danger that shrinkageof such a pin would loosen it to an extent that it might come out of thetree and become lost. The hinge pin herein illustrated, in accordancewith a feature of the invention, has an enlarged portion for frictionalengagement with the passage in which the pin is received and, asillustrated, the enlarged portion is opposite a groove or notchpermitting it to yield as it is positioned in the tree, therebyincreasing the friction.

These and other features of the invention will best be understood from aconsideration of the following specification taken in connection withthe accompanying drawing, in which Fig. 1 shows a completed all woodshoe tree having two parts hinged together;

Fig. 2 is an angular view of the heel part of such a tree which has beenbroken away to show a hinge plate; and

Fig. 3 is a side elevation, on an enlarged scale, of a special hingepin.

The improved shoe tree comprises a forepart portion l8 which isbifurcated at its rear end to provide a slot !2 extending heightwise ofthe tree, and this bifurcated portion of the tree is pierced by atransverse cylindrical passage i adapted to receive a hinge pin it. Thetree also includes a heel part l8, the sides of which merge with thesides of the forepart. This heel part has a handle 21) and is grooved ornotched at 22 (Fig. 2) to receive one end of a hinge plate 24. made ofplywood and held in position in the heel part by dowels 26. One of theseis received in a transverse aperture while the rearmost dowel passesthrough an open-ended notch in this hinge plate, thus avoiding the needfor undue care in spacing the holes to receive the dowels 26. Theforward end of the hinge plate has a plurality of transverse apertures28 enabling a lengthwise adjustment of the heel piece with respect tothe forepart.

Through the passage M and one of these apertures 28 extends the hingepin [6 about which the heel part pivots. This hinge pin has a notch orgroove 3!] at one end and the divided portions 32 of the pin adjacent tothat notch are spread laterally to form an enlarged portion, thediameter of which is greater than the normal diameter of the passage l4.As illustrated, a wedge piece 34 is preferably glued in position in thenotch 30 to hold the portions 32 in their spread condition. The wedge 34may be constructed of wood, leather or some other slightly yieldablematerial. By reason of these spread end portions 32 the pin will be heldfrictionally in place regardless of any shrinkage of the parts and yetmay be readily re moved for replacement in any of the holes 28 of thehinge plate.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. In a two-part last-like member, a hinge pin having a grooved portionprovided with an insert, shorter than the grooved portion, resilientlyholding said portion outside the normal contour of the pin.

2. A hinge pin, for a two-part last-like member having a cylindricalhole in one of its parts, said hinge pin being adapted. to be insertedin said hole and having a notched end portion the outer sides of whichare flared for frictional engagement with said hole and yield uponengagement With the sides of the hole.

3. In a shoe tree, a forepart member for the forepart of a shoe, and aheel member, one of said members being provided with a bifurcated endportion, the other having a projecting hinge plate received in saidbifurcated portion, said hinge plate having a plurality of apertures toenable the length of the tree to be adjusted, and a removable hinge pinextending through the bifurcated portion and one of the holes of thehinge plate, said hinge pin being provided with a notched portion andmeans for urging the sides of the pin at the notched portion to spreadlaterally beyond the normal diameter of the pin.

4. In a wooden shoe tree made up of two portions which are hingedtogether, a Wooden hinge pin provided with a groove at one end parallelto the axis of the pin and a wedge-shaped member inserted in said grooveto spread the end portions adjacent thereto.

ALBERT P. BAXENDALE.

